My work centers access, diversity, equity, inclusion, and community building to make advancements in areas of postsecondary education, training, and workforce development that lead to sustainable social change. Institutionalizing change requires transparency and accountability, so I clearly and frequently communicate and listen across organizations and communities. I use qualitative and quantitative data to evaluate impacts on the programs and populations served, and measure unintended consequences to make responsive iterative change.
I studied English and Fine Arts at Manhattan College in the Bronx, NYC. After leaving New York, I spent over a decade studying the dynamics of power and cultivating organizational change at Research I institutions of postsecondary education in the Greater Boston Area.
A common theme across my lived and career experiences has been intellectual curiosity to research and understand the hows and whys of my work and its place within an institution, and how individual contributions fit into and impact the economy and society at large. So, I left the workforce and pursued the M.A. in Educational Policy Studies at Boston University to study quantitative and qualitative research methodologies, and to learn how to document and convey knowledge gained through changemaking using formal research.
As a thought partner, I focus on information flow, data-informed decision making, policy development, and change management for recruitment, advancement, training, and management of people. I help to design programs that provide individuals with high market value workforce training and create strategic opportunities for career advancement and longevity. Having learned in different roles and institutions, I regularly exercise my ability to move fluidly from assessment and active listening, to systems thinking, to strategic planning, to communicating with a diverse set of constituents, and rolling up my sleeves to manage projects and implementation.
I assist IYAI as a thought partner and grant-writer working to develop and maintain meaningful, mutually beneficial relationships with higher education and industry partners. To advance IYAI’s mission of equitable and inclusive communities via infrastructure career pathways for youth, I work with potential and current partners to define goals, address systemic and chronic challenges, maximize on organizational strengths, and apply theories and frameworks of change management. Together we identify growth areas of mutual benefit, and align programs, or create new ones, and celebrate a series of intermediary goals along the long stretches of transition as the team meets exciting new organizational goals. I also focus on designing research and evaluation plans to measure impact—on the youth engaging with programs, on the teams advancing in a new venture, and the job market and community.
After attending school full-time during the COVID-19 pandemic, I graduated in 2021 and I am thrilled to have moved to the Bay Area! Now that I am here and closer to family, I am enjoying building relationships with various local communities in my neighborhood and beyond. I hope to transition from exploring the Bay on foot and bicycle to cruising these amazing hills on my longboard!
